Resumen

This project describes the improvement process of a simulation model for mechanical presses with Dynamic Drive Chain® kit (DDC) developed by ABB SA.
Eccentric mechanical presses use a wheel of inertia combined with a clutch to descend, stamp and finally climb back to the top dead centre. In them, there is a limitation on the cycle time given by the speed at which the stamping is performed. This speed is defined by the quality of the stamp to be obtained and is directly related to the speed of the wheel, which is almost unchanged during the cycle.
DDC kit is a system that includes an additional press servomotor to provide control over the speed of ascent and descent of the slide and thus, reduce its cycle time and obtain other benefits.
Since the birth of DDC, a model was available to run simulations but it was difficult to adjust and the precision of the results was low. For that reason, it was decided to develop a new model that better represented the real system, in order to obtain more accurate results and, consequently, better define the requirements and specifications of new press systems.
During this project, it was analysed the operation of mechanical presses and DDC to then, perform a mathematical modelling of the different components and dynamics that characterize them. Once these models were developed, they were implemented in MATLAB®. This software offers a very powerful tool called Simulink, which serves as a basis for performing simulations and has been very useful when carrying out this project.
Next step was model validation. Results of both models, the former and the new one, were compared with real data. Improvements in the accuracy of the results have been remarkable, with a reduction of error of plus 50%.
Finally, an analysis of the feasibility of the project was performed, both financially and environmentally. The economic analysis consisted of calculating the costs of this project and the subsequent study and impact on investment. The environmental analysis has been done to see what influence may have the new model for future projects of DDC from a perspective of reducing the environment impact of these projects.